Are Your Ancient Coins Authentic? A Guide To Help You Find Out

You enjoy collecting ancient coins, but you also want to make sure that your coins are authentic. The safest thing you can do is purchase your pieces from an ancient coin dealer, but you can also learn a few things about fake coins with the following guide.

Check The Weight Of The Coin

One of the things that counterfeiters might have a hard time replicating is the exact weight of the original ancient coin. This is a good place to start when it comes to separating fake coins from authentic ancient coins. 

Most counterfeit coins are off by a few grams from the standard weight of the ancient coin. The graph in this link can teach you about the weight of wsome of the common ancient Greek coins, although there are different standards for other types of coins,  like Egyptian or Asian ancient coins. You can talk to you your ancient coin specialist about other weight standards so that you are prepared.

One good investment that you should consider is a portable digital coin scale that you can have with you whenever you hunt for a coin. This scale, along with knowledge regarding the standard weight of a particular coin, should help you find out if the coin is real or fake. But you should still have your coin specialist confirm this for you.

Pay Attention To The Details

You want to pay close attention to the letters and numbers of the coin that you are examining. The size of the letters and numbers of most ancient coins were exactly the same. The images on the coins--be it the emperor, numbers, letters, ruler of the time, or a deity--were casted with precision. Meaning that you should be able to see the definition in each image. 

Remember that any wear that you notice should be seen throughout the coin. One trick that some counterfeiters use is they attempt to add wear to the coin, but the wear is usually uneven. You should carry a magnifying glass with you to see these types of details. 

Remember, you should not purchase a coin from an unknown source if you are not sure of its authenticity, even if the price seems reasonable. But, as you can see, there are a few things you should educate yourself about regarding counterfeit and authentic ancient coins. You can also talk to your ancient coin specialist, as he or she may have other tips for you to chew on. To learn more, speak with someone like Harlan J. Berk, LTD.

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I worked for a cleaning company for about six years before I got tired of making the owner all kinds of money while he paid me an eighth of what he charged to clean each home. I started looking into what it would cost to start my own cleaning business and found it to be a very affordable venture. After I knew exactly what I would need and the insurance costs associated with the business, I started researching the loan options. I compiled what I learned about borrowing money to start up a small business here on my blog to help others hoping to do the same thing.